"I was never an enemy to the King, nor to any man's person upon the earth. I am in the love that fulfills the law which thinks no evil but loves even enemies, and would have the King saved, and come to knowledge of the truth, and be brought into the fear of the Lord, to receive his wisdom from above, by which all things are made and created, that with that wisdom he may order all things to the glory of God."
George Fox
Journal p. 349

What is this blog about?

Politics and spirituality don't mix...but they meet. Here I look at political events as they appear by my Light and how the rejection of the testimonies of the Religious Society of Friends--Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community and Equality--is the sand upon which our political house is built.

By the way--religion is far less likely to harm civil politics as civil politics is likely to degrade religion. How do you think that flag got stuck up in the corner of all those churches?

Lets just keep the two as separate as we can--so we don't start hanging one another in the town square.

What's all this stuff about Lily?

Those who know me are aware that I am the most cynical person one can ever meet. Anyone looking for the worst of motives from human beings, for the bottom-of-the-barrel analysis of any situation only need talk to me to get it.

Lily Tomlin once said something along the lines of "No matter how cynical I get, it's hard to keep up."

When I see someone in politics doing something that sets a new standard of hypocrisy or blazes new trails into the territory of a lack of integrity, I will write a little blurb and award them a "Lily"--my own personal little prize for their achievement.

And by the way, the fact that I am cynical does not make me pessimistic. On the contrary, I am the most optimistic person you will ever meet. One of the sources of my optimism is that I am so rarely wrong about my cynical takes that I am confident that the ground for my cynicism points the way to the solution to the problem.

The situation can be fixed, in other words. Find the way and you will have found God, for it is the sacred, and not the profane, that is in the details of reconciliation.

About Me

I am a convinced Beanite Friend, a member of Bridge City Friends Meeting, Willamette Quarterly Meeting and North Pacific Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.
Notwithstanding the doubts of some who claim the name, I am a Christian who does a Buddhist practice and believes that God talks to everyone, all the time.
I have worked in the judicial branch of government, as well as being a trial lawyer, a public school teacher (counselor and coach), a kite merchant, and a Marine Corp Sergeant.
I am currently working as a consultant to public and private agencies on issues of child welfare, juvenile justice, and substance abuse treatment courts.